What are potted shrimp?
A traditional British seafood dish, potted shrimp originated in Lancashire in the North West of England. Although any small shrimp can be used, they are traditionally made with small brown shrimps caught in Morecambe Bay. They are boiled, shelled, and mixed with clarified butter and spices.
How to prepare potted shrimp
The preparation should start the day before by melting the butter in a saucepan on low heat and adding nutmeg and cayenne pepper. Then add the shrimp, stir them to warm them through, and add seasoning.
Remove the shrimp from their shells, press them into small serving dishes, and then let them cool. Refrigerate for up to fifteen minutes to allow them to set, then reheat the remaining butter and pour it over the prawns. Then refrigerate them overnight.
Twenty minutes before serving, remove the potted shrimp from the fridge and spread onto brown toast. Alternatively, you can mix the shrimp and butter into cooked pasta.
James Bond’s favourite food
Ian Fleming, the writer of the James Bond novels, was a fan of potted shrimp, which he ate at his favourite restaurant in London – Scott’s. He was such a fan that he passed it on to his character, Bond.
What are cockles?
A popular type of seafood worldwide, cockles are small selfish that have a salty taste. Inside their little heart-shaped shells, there is a small bit of flesh which can be eaten in various ways – steamed, boiled, or even raw. They are part of the clam family and are available throughout the year.
How to cook cockles
One important thing to remember with cockles is they need to be alive when you buy them. The shells should be shut, and they should have a fresh smell. If you find one that’s open, tap it, and it should close. If it doesn’t, get rid of it.
Before you cook the cockles, make sure you rinse off any dirt or sand. Then put a cup’s worth of water into a large pan with a dash of white wine vinegar or lemon juice, and bring it to the boil. Put the cockles into the saucepan, cover them, and cook for a couple of minutes. The shells will pop open when they are ready and then you can pick the cockles out for eating.
What do cockles go with?
Rather than being a main dish, cockles are usually eaten along with something else. But you don’t need to limit yourself to only eating them with seafood. For example, you could have them with lamb. Why not? People eat oysters with beef. You could even put them into a hot pot.
However, you might want to avoid having cockles with anything too heavy, such as a rich cheesy sauce. If you eat them with pasta, it is probably best not to have an overly tasty pasta sauce. Instead, simply flavour it with olive oil, lemon, and herbs.
So there you go. If you are looking to try some different seafood, why not try potted shrimp or cockles.
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